ROCK ENGINEERING

Properties of rock and rock masses

• Intact rock refers to:
 Unfractured blocks between discontinuities in a typical rock mass
 May range from a few millimeters to several meters
 The properties are governed by:
o Physical properties of the materials of which it is composed
o Manner in which they are bonded to each other

• The parameters which may be used in a description of intact rock

include:
 name
 Color
 Texture
 Grain size
 Minor lithological characteristics
 Density
 porosity
 Strength
 Hardness
 deformability
• Rock in an engineering scale is generally a mass of rock at the site

• This mass of rock is termed as – Rock mass

It is the whole body of the rock in situ

Consists of Intact rock blocks and all types of discontinuities (joints, faults etc)

• Rock mass:

A material quite different to other structural members used in civil engineering

Ideally – composed of a system of rock blocks and fragments separated by

discontinuities
• All elements behave in mutual dependence as a unit
Primary geometrical properties of discontinuities in rock
Factors affecting rock properties
 Texture influences the rock strength directly- through the degree of interlocking of the component
grains

 Rock defects –
- Micro-fractures, Grain boundaries, Mineral cleavages and Planar discontinuities

- Influence the ultimate rock strength and may act as surfaces of weakness where failure occurs

- When cleavage has high or low angles with the physical stress direction, the mode of failure is mainly influenced
by the cleavage.

 Anisotropy
- Common because of preferred orientations of mineral and directional stress history

 Rocks are seldom continuous owing to pores and fissures.

 Temperature and pressure

- All rock types undergo a decrease in strength with increasing temperature

- Increase in strength with increasing confining pressure

- At high confining pressure, rocks are more difficult to fracture

  The presence of moisture in rocks adversely affects their engineering strength

 Reduction in strength with increasing water content is due to lowering of tensile strength.

• Physical properties of rock

Luster
- The state or quality of shining by reflecting light
- Glitter, sparkle, sheen, gloss.

Texture
- The visual and tactile (how it feels) quality of a surface
- Rough, smooth, bumpy, gritty, rigid, soft, hard

Shape
- A specific form
- Round, oval, diamond, circular, square, rectangle
• Index properties of rock

There are vast ranges in the properties –

- Engineers rely on a number of basic measurements to describe rocks quantitatively

Porosity- Identifies the relative proportions of solids and voids

Density – a mineralogical constituents parameter

Sonic velocity – evaluates the degree of fissuring

Permeability – the relative interconnection of pores

Durability – tendency for eventual breakdown of components or structures with

degradation of rock quality

Strength – existing competency of the rock fabric binding components

• Porosity
𝑣𝑝
𝑛=
𝑣𝑡
Where 𝑣𝑝 is pore volume and 𝑣𝑡 is the total volume

- Typical values for sandstones are around 15%

- In igneous and metamorphic rocks , a large proportion of the pore space occurs as planar
“fissures”.

- With weathering this increases to >20%

- Porosity is therefore a fraction between 0 and 1

- The value is typically ranging from less than 0.01 for solid granite to upto 0.5 for porous
sandstone

- It may also be represented in percent terms

• Density
- Rocks exhibit a greater range in density than soils

- Knowledge of rock density is important for engineering practice

- A concrete aggregate with higher than average density can mean a smaller volume of concrete
required for a gravity retaining wall or dam.

- Expressed as weight per unit volume

- It is sometimes defined by unit weight and specific gravity

- Most rocks have density between 2500 and 2800 kg/m3

• Sonic velocity
- Longitudinal velocity Vl measured on rock core

- Velocity depends on elastic properties and density

- But in practice a network of fissures has an overriding effect

- Can be used to estimate the degree of fissuring of a rock specimen by plotting against porosity (%)
• Durability

- exfoliation, hydration, slaking, solution, oxidation and abrasion all lower rock
quality. Measured by Franklin and Chandra (1972)

Slake durability test

- Approximately 500g of broken lumps(50 g each) are placed inside a rotating drum

- is rotated at 20 revolutions per minute in a water bath for 10 minutes.

- The drum is internally divided by a sieve mesh (2mm openings)

- After the 10 min rotation – the percentage of rock (dry weight basis) retained in the drum
gives the slake durability index (SDI)

- A six step ranking of the index is applied (very high to very low)
 • For rock as engineerimg material we care about its strength
and durability
• For getting the strength test we can use abrasion test
• For durability test we can use sulfate soundness test and
freezing and thawing test

• Abrasion resistance test

Sample weight 5 kg, specific size gradation specific no. of steel
spheres, interior projecting shelf, 500 revolutions, then use
#12 sieve width d=0.141mm.

Percent loss = (material finner than #12 sieve)/(original

weight)

For highway construction, we need percent loss less than 35 –

50 %
Strength of rocks:

• Compressive strength

• Uniaxial compressive strength

• Triaxial compressive strength

• Tensile strength
• Point load test
• Brazillian test

• Shear strength
• Direct shear test
 Tests for strength of rock

Specimen preparation

• Types of specimen

• Regular: i) cylindrical, ii) prismatic or cubic

• Irregular

• Special-shape specimens

• Length to diameter ratio for some tests

Compressive strength tests 2.5 to 3.0 (usually 2.0 to 3.0)

Bending tests 3 to 7
Brazilian tests 0.5 to 1.0
Punch tests 0.2 to 0.25
• For regular specimen

• Important to have finishing of specimen ends to certain standards before testing: ridges and
hollows at specimen ends form points of stress concentration and cause failure at a relatively
low load

• Stronger rocks: more sensitive to end roughness than weaker rocks

• Finish given on a lathe, surface grinder or a lapping machine

• The tolerance on dimensions of cylindrical specimens for compressive strength test suggested
by ISRM committee (International Society for Rock Mechanics) on laboratory tests

• Ends of specimen should be flat to 0.02mm

• Ends should be perpendicular to the axis of the specimen within 0.001 radians

• The sides of the specimen should be smooth & should be free of abrupt irregularities & straight to within
0.3mm over full length of the specimen
• For irregular specimen

• Blunting sharp edges by slight taps of a small

hammer

• Dimensions of specimen are calculated from

their weights

• Number of specimens: depends on scatter, i.e.,

variability of results, desired accuracy &reliability
of mean value

Usually 5 for UCS & 3 for each confining stress in tri-axial

test
 Uniaxial compression test (UCS) test
𝑃𝑓
• Compressive strength of intact rock, σ𝑐𝑖 =
𝐴0

• Compressive strength of rock: Influenced by

mineralogical composition, porosity, grain size & the
bond between grains

• Factors influencing compressive strength due to

testing procedure:
• Specimen features: shape, L/d ratio & volume
• Friction at loading ends from the platens
• Rate of loading
• Testing environment: pore fluid and temperature
• Stiffness of the loading machine: may be less than
0.1MN/mm

For capturing stress-strain response in post-peak region,

stiff testing machines with stiffness between 1 &2
MN/mm are adopted with servo controlled system
• Load: applied to specimen through a circular seating platen at constant stress
rate of 0.5 to 1.0 Mpa/sec or the test is completed in 5 to 10 mins, i.e., strain
controlled: ≤0.01 cm/cm/sec.
Stress controlled test: more close to realistic problems

• Diameter: measured in two perpendicular directions at three locations

 𝑃
• Stress at any axial strain,σ1′ =
𝐴0

∆𝐿
• Corresponding axial strain, ε1′ =
𝐿0

• At failure, compressive strength of

specimen,
𝑃𝑓
σ𝑐𝑖 =
𝐴0

∆𝑑
Diametrical strain, ε3 =
𝑑

Volumetric strain at any axial strain,

ε𝑣 =ε1 + 2ε3
• Determination of modulus

• Tangent modulus,

• Secant modulus

• Initial tangent modulus

• Poison’s ratio estimated from

straight line portion of stress- strain
curves as

Δ𝜀3
𝜈=
𝜀1
• L/d 2–3

0.222
When L/d < 2, 𝜎𝑐 = 𝜎𝑐1 [0.778 + 𝐿 ]
( )
𝑑

𝜎𝑐1 : compressive strength for (L/d) = 1; 𝜎𝑐 : compressive strength for required

(L/d)> 1& ≤ 2

• For test conducted at any (L/d) between 1&2: the strength for (L/d)=1 is
calculated
Say, (L/d)=1.5 → 𝜎𝑐1.5 : obtained from the test (known)
• 𝜎𝑐2 is calculated

• No correction for elastic modulus

 Point load test
• It is a test that aims at characterizing rock materials in terms of strength.

• It is an index test-
• It can be performed relatively quickly and without the necessity of sophisticated
equipment to provide important data on the mechanical properties of rocks.

• Index tests - widely used in soil mechanics (example: particle size

distribution, relative density, Atterberg’s limit, water content)
• but later introduced in rock mechanics.

• The strength of a rock material is a critical factor especially in designing

civil and mining engineering projects.
• Deriving this critical property is not an easy task:
• it requires laboratory tests and special equipment (loading machines, core drilling and sampling
techniques).

• Point Load test is an alternate method that can be used to adequately predict the uniaxial
compressive strength of a rock material using a portable and simpler equipment.

• Schmidt Hammer Rebound test is also a technique used for this purpose but, it is admitted
that its results are far more variable and affected by testing methods.
• Test apparatus
• A rock sample with various shapes is subjected to
compression between two conical steel platens until
failure.

• The apparatus consists of

• a rigid loading frame
• a loading measuring system and
• a simple system of measuring the distance between the two
platens. This distance is usually 1.5 to 10 centimeters so that
specimens of various sizes can be tested.

• The capacity of the loading machine is usually 25kN or

50kN and typically utilizes a hydraulic pressure gauge.

• The load measurements are accurate to, at least, 5%

regardless of the strength and the size of the sample.
• Typical, digital, Point Load Test apparatus is presented in the pictures
below.
• Size and shape of specimen

• A benefit of Point Load tests is that

• they can be conducted on cylindrical, rectangular or even irregular specimens

• given that they comply with some geometric regulations.

• According to the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM),

• a specimen’s external dimensions must range between 3.0 to 8.5 centimeters with the
preferred dimension being 5 centimeters.
• Testing procedure
• Depending on the shape of the specimen, the Point Load strength index can be derived via 4
different types of tests:

• Diametral Test
• Diametral Point Load Tests are conducted on cylindrical samples.

• The ratio of the specimen’s length to its diameter (2L/D) should be more than unity.

• The sample is placed in the loading device and is loaded perpendicular to its core axis so that
the platens make contact along its diameter.

• The distance between the free end and the location of the contact points must be greater
than 0.5D.

• Then, the distance between the contact points (which should be equal to the diameter) is
recorded and the specimen is loaded to failure.

• A schematic diagram of a diametral point load test is presented in the picture below:
Diametral test
Axial test

Block lump test Irregular lump test

• Axial test
• The Axial Point Load Test is conducted on cylindrical samples that have a relatively smaller length.

• The ratio between the diameter and the length of the specimen must range between 0.3 and 1.0.

• The specimen is placed so that the loading platens are parallel to its core axis.

• The distance between the contact points is measured before initiating the test.

• A typical configuration of an axial PL test is shown in picture above.

• Block lump test

• Block Lumps Tests are conducted on rectangular prism samples with a preferable dimension of 5.0
± 3.5 centimeters.

• The sample is placed in the apparatus so that its smallest dimension makes contact with the
loading platens.

• As shown in the picture above:

• the Diameter to Width ratio should be between 0.3 and 1.0
• the length between the contact points and the free end of the sample, must be greater than 0.5D.
• Irregular lump test

• PL tests may also be carried out in irregular blocks that resemble the geometry
of a rectangular prism.

• In this case, a cross-section of a certain block is considered a trapezoid with its

top and bottom bases (W1 and W2) being parallel and its height being constant
(D).

• An average width is calculated (W=(W1+W2)/2) and the loading process is similar

to that of the Block Lump Test.

• A schematic of the specimen’s geometric characteristics and the loading forces

applied during the PL test is depicted in the picture above.
• Validity of plate load test

• Based on the mode of failure,

Point Load tests are classified
as valid or invalid.

• Invalid tests are not taken into

consideration in the final results;
therefore, it is crucial to
acknowledge when a test is
valid.

• The failure surface should pass

through both contact points.

• Typical examples of valid and

invalid modes of failure in PL
tests are depicted in pictures Figures: a,b,c) Typical modes of failure for valid PL tests. d, e)
alongside. Typical modes of failure for invalid PL tests (ISRM, 1985)
• Anisotropic rock
• A rock material is considered anisotropic when its mechanical properties change
depending on the loading direction.

• This property is actually presented in many rocks since weak planes are created
due to geologic processes and the materials do not appear homogenous.

• Schist, marble, gneiss and phyllite are some examples of rocks presenting
anisotropic behavior.

• Regarding PL test, such materials should be tested in the directions of the

maximum and minimum strength.

• Those directions are parallel and perpendicular to the anisotropy planes as

shown in pictures below.

• The best results are obtained using core specimens in which the core axis is
perpendicular to the anisotropy planes.
 Point Load test on
A) the direction of the maximum strength and
B) the direction of minimum strength in anisotropic rocks
Calculations

• When a PL test is completed, the raw data include the dimensions of the
sample and the load of failure P (kN).
• Initially, the equivalent core diameter “De” is calculated based on the
shape of the specimen as:

Where, A is the minimum cross-section area of a plane through the contact point of the
planes and is calculated as:
The Uncorrected Point Load Strength IS , is derived via the following equation:

• It is generally acknowledged that, in rock mechanics,

• the size of a tested specimen affects its mechanical properties.

• This is highly associated with the non-homogenous nature of rock materials.

• In bigger samples, there is a higher probability of a weaker plane or a fracture affecting the
behavior of the material.

• For this reason, the value of the IS is corrected based on the size of the sample to a reference
dimension (50mm) as:
• Where, F is a size correction factor which is calculated as:

• After each corrected PL strength is calculated

• the two highest and two lowest values are excluded (given that 10 or more tests have
been conducted on the tested material) and

• the average IS50 is derived.

• Estimation of Uniaxial Compressive Strength (UCS) based on IS50

• The PL tests are a rock classification index but they can also be used to estimate the
UCS of the tested rock.

• There have been many studies on the correlation between IS50 and UCS

• research has shown that there is no valid relation that could predict with high
accuracy the actual UCS of a material based on IS50.

• However, an approximate value can be determined.

• The UCS can be estimated using the following formula:

• Where C is a constant that depends on the UCS and IS50 ratio.

• To correctly derive the value of C:
• both PL and UCS tests must be conducted on the tested material
• if no such data are available, generalized values of C for core samples can be used as shown in
Table 1.

Table 1: Generalized values of C based on the size of core samples (Data from ASTM, 1995)

 For core sizes that range between the given values of Table 1, a linear interpolation can be utilized
to derive the value of C.
Calculation Example

• Suppose that 10 core samples were prepared for diametral PL tests.

• The distance between the contact points of the two platens (D) and the length
between a contact point and the free end (L) are measured before the beginning of
the test and presented in Table 2.

• The derived parameters including the IS, IS50 and the estimated UCS of each specimen
are shown in Table 3.
Table 2: Dimension measurements and checks example of 10 core samples before
conducting the PL test
Table 3: The parameters derived including the corrected IS50 and the estimated UCS of each specimen
• Based on the derived results, the average IS50 and average UCS of the test set is
calculated by excluding the two highest and lowest values of each parameter:
Shear Strength tests of rock
 Shear tests

• Methods in which normal stress on shearing plane is zero

i) Single shear test
ii) Double shear test
iii) Punch test

• Methods of determining shear strength with compression

i) Direct shear test
a) Test on intact specimen
b) Test along a joint
ii) Direct shear test on irregular lumps of rock
iii) Tri-axial shear test
Methods in which normal stress on shearing plane is zero
 Direct shear test

• Only one discontinuity per specimen can be tested.

• The test is usually conducted in the undrained state with an applied constant normal load.

• The Direct Shear Test is an experimental procedure conducted in geotechnical engineering

practice and research that aims to determine the shear strength.

• Shear strength is defined as the maximum resistance that a material can withstand when
subjected to shearing.

• Requirements and laboratory procedures for performing direct shear strength tests on
rock specimens.

• It includes procedures for both intact rock strength and sliding friction tests which can be
performed on:
• specimens that are homogeneous, or have planes of weakness, including natural or artificial
discontinuities.
• Examples of an artificial discontinuity include a rock-concrete interface.

• Discontinuities may be open, partially or completely healed or filled (that is,

clay fillings and gouge).

• However, a clean, open discontinuity may be free draining, and, therefore, a

test on a clean, open discontinuity could be considered a drained test.

• During the test, shear strength is determined at various applied stresses

normal to the sheared plane and at various shear displacements.

• Relationships derived from the test data include shear strength versus normal
stress and shear stress versus shear displacement
(shear stiffness).
• NOTE 1—The term “normal force” is used instead of normal stress because
of the indefinable area of contact and the minimal relative displacement
between upper and lower halves of the specimen during testing.

The actual contact areas during testing change, but the actual total contact surface is
unmeasurable.
Therefore nominal area is used for loading purposes and calculations.

• NOTE 2—no provision for the measurement of pore pressures, the strength
values determined are expressed in terms of total stress, uncorrected for
pore pressure.

• This standard applies to hard rock, soft rock, and concrete.

Terminology
• Definitions of Terms Specific to the Standard:

• apparent stress—nominal stress, that is, external load per unit area. It is calculated by
dividing the externally applied load by the nominal area.
• Asperity:
• quality—the roughness of a surface.
• feature—a surface irregularity ranging from sharp or angular to rounded or wavy.
• asperities—the collection of a surface’s irregularities that account for the surface’s roughness.

• Discontinuity:
• An abrupt change, interruption, or break in the integrity or physical properties of rock, such as a
bedding plane, fracture, cleavage, crack, joint, or fault.
• A gapped discontinuity consists of opposing rock surfaces separated by an open or filled space. A
tight discontinuity consists of opposing rock surfaces in intimate and generally continuous contact;
it may be valid to treat such a discontinuity as a single surface.
• A discontinuity’s opposing rock surfaces may be planar to nonplanar and matching to misfit.
• intact shear strength—the peak shear resistance (in units of stress) of an intact rock specimen
or of a specimen containing a completely healed discontinuity.

• nominal area—area obtained by measuring or calculating the cross-sectional area of the shear
plane. It is calculated after its relevant cross-sectional dimensions are determined.

• residual shear strength—the shear stress, corresponding to a specific normal stress, for which
the shear stress remains essentially constant with increasing shear displacement. In most cases,
the shear stress after reaching Point A is the residual shear strength.

• shear stiffness—represents the resistance of the specimen to shear displacements under an

applied shear force prior to reaching the peak shear strength. It is calculated by dividing the
applied apparent shear stress by the resulting shear displacement (slope of the curve prior to
peak shear strength).

• sliding friction shear strength—the peak shear resistance (in units of stress) of a rock
specimen containing an open discontinuity.
 Methods of determining shear strength with compression
i) Direct shear test
a) Test on intact specimen
b) Test along a joint

a) Test on intact specimen

b) Test along a joint
plane of sliding may be horizontal, inclined, smooth, wavy or rough